São Paulo – The European Union said on Thursday (18) that it has disaccredited 20 Brazilian plants that were formerly authorized to sell poultry and other items to the 28-country bloc. The units are owned by nine different companies, and 12 of them belong to BRF.
The move comes after shortcomings were detected in government oversight of the plants at hand. It will become effective 15 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union, which hasn’t happened yet.
In hearing the news, Brazil’s Agriculture, Livestock and Supply minister Blairo Maggi said once again that the federal government will request a panel at the World Trade Organization (WTO) to dispute the EU’s move. “We can accept protection on grounds of animal health, but market protection we will not accept,” Maggi wrote on his Twitter account.
According to the minister, the meat packers banned by the EU account for 30% to 35% of exports from Brazil to that bloc. “Although it’s a very big impact, it’s not the end of the world. We will need to quickly shift these sales toward other markets,” the minister tweeted.
With information from Agência Brasil. Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
